His Majesty's Protector
by Panhead17
Summary: Running a country is hard work, and dangerous. Captain Knightwalker is disappointed when she's assigned to Jellal's personal guard, but soon learns to enjoy it. Now the time has come for the king to make an important decision, and both of them are concerned about what choice will be made. Can Erza help her king with his decision, or is she the answer the whole time?
1. Chapter 1

**His Majesty's Protector**

**Summary- Running a country is hard work, and dangerous. Captain Knightwalker is disappointed when she's assigned to Jellal's personal guard, but soon learns to enjoy it. Now the time has come for the king to make an important decision, and both of them are tense about what choice will be made.**

**Author's Note- Well, here's the MystWalker fic I promised everyone, a little bit ahead of schedule. Just to clarify, Earthland Jellal will not appear in this story, so Jellal is actually EdoJellal, if you didn't figure that out.**

**Chapter 1- Really? **

Jellal stretched in his chair and tried to pay attention. Council meetings were _so _boring, but as the king he had to make an effort to listen to what was happening. Right now the elderly council members were discussing some pointless agreement with neighboring Vessak about reparations from Faust's reign of terror, but the king's mind lay elsewhere.

Specifically, his thoughts lay on the equally bored-looking redheaded warrior sitting a few seats to his right. He liked everything about her, from her uninterested scowl to her short scarlet hair, right down to the fact that she still carried around her weapon, Ten Commandments. despitethe fact that the loss of magic in Edolas had rendered its transformation power useless.

Jellal was snapped out of his reverie by a sudden shift in conversation from the council. It sounded like they were talking about him…

"Our final order of business is the new king's protection. Until his official coronation, he is under a higher threat of attack than usual, and the council has seen it fit to assign him a personal guard."

Jellal groaned inwardly. With all the paperwork and other duties he had, a bodyguard would only get in the way…

"It is the council's opinion that the best candidate for this position is Captain Knightwalker."

The woman in question stood up suddenly, a haughty look on her face and a sharp comment on her lips, but both died with a sharp glare from the head of the council, Councilman Bohr. _Ironic considering that's exactly what the man was_ Jellal thought before turning his attention back to the captain.

"Councilman, I strongly disagree with this assessment. The 2nd Army Division is already under my command, and they have taken control of Palace security. Without me, they will grow weak and undisciplined and-"

"Captain Knightwalker, that is enough. Control of the army divisions will be redistributed, with Sugarboy leading the 3rd and 4th Divisions and Hughes, the 1st and 2nd. You will be responsible for the Palace security, as well as the protection of the King. This has already been decided."

Erza sat back down hard, clearly unhappy with this arrangement. Jellal was slightly happy because of the identity of his personal guard, but the fact that he'd have to deal with Erza's abrasive personality on a regular basis was a bit off-putting.

With that decision, the meeting finally ended and Jellal quickly left the room and entered his office. He still had a metric shit ton of paperwork that had to be done, and his upcoming coronation was giving him a huge headache, A sudden knock on his door left him in a slightly snappish mood.

He slammed the door open, sick of the bureaucracy and ready to punch something.

"What the hell- oh. Captain Knightwalker, I apologize, come on in."

Jellal stepped aside and allowed the redhead in.

"Sorry about that." Jellal said somewhat sheepishly. "I thought it might be Bohr or someone with more fucking paperwork."

"No apology necessary Your Highness. If I was in your position, I probably would've punched out whoever knocked at my door with a second glance."

Jellal laughed slightly at this before returning to his desk. He slumped into the chair and let his head fall onto the large piles of paperwork. "Y'know, you don't have to sit and watch my every move to protect me."

"I prefer to leave nothing to chance. I'll sit and watch you as long as I deem it necessary, Your Highness."

"Enough with that crap, if you're going to be my guard, you may as well just start calling me Jellal."

"All right then Jellal, I have a couple things I want to go over. You are not to leave the Palace without me, walk the grounds without me, go anywhere or do anything that may place your life in danger without me present, and gods help anyone who tries to assassinate you."

"Those are some rather explicit rules…"

"If you want to live, you'll follow them."

Jellal nodded, but at the moment was more focused on Erza's hair to notice anything else. It had started growing back from when she had cut it, and he loved the way it flowed over her shoulders. Even her carefree way of tying it back looked sexy as hell, and by the gods he couldn't figure out why she was so alluring.

"You alright there, Your Majesty?" Erza asked, more irritated than concerned.

"Oh, yes, yes, just a little tired."

"You should get some sleep. Your training starts tomorrow at dawn."

"Understo- wait training?"

"Oh, I didn't tell you?" Erza said with a slightly sadistic smile. "If I'm going to be in charge of your safety, you are going to learn some self-defense. Maybe if you get good enough I can ditch you and get my actually job back."

Jellal was slightly offended by her lack of compassion, but knew better than to speak up. Knightwalker was sadistic and cruel, which made his feelings about her even more confusing. Erza stood to leave and Jellal stepped forward to open the door. After wishing her good night, the king walked back to his desk and sat down, now even more flustered and confused.

Why he found the brutal captain so attractive was a mystery, but now that he would be forced to spend so much time with her, maybe he could puzzle it out. _Who knows?_ he thought _Maybe I can change her, make her feel _something_, even if it isn't what I feel._

Deep down though, he knew that would almost certainly never happen. Erza Knightwalker was an unfeeling, cold-hearted bitch if he had ever seen one, and no one, not even a king, was going to change that.

**I hope this isn't a stupid beginning. This fic is in response to a survey I took on a previous story called "Her?" that you should totally check out if you are a Bixlow x Lisanna fan. I really love this ship, but it is so underrated and it makes me upset, so I decided to write a story for it. Hope you like it!**


	2. The Crack of F'ing Dawn

**Author's Note- Alrighty here it is. Chapter 2. Once again, if you are a fan of Bixlow x Lisanna, check out the story I've written for that. So yeah. Here's a peek at Jellal's, 'ahem' training session. Also, Bohr is NOT Byro, he is just someone I made up to be the Council Head, as Byro is Chief of Staff.**

**Chapter 2- Crack of F'ing Dawn**

Jellal was awoken with a sudden jolt as _someone_ violently kicked him awake. Looking up and seeing the redheaded beauty standing above him, he at first thought he was still dreaming, but the sudden cuff to the head he received shattered that illusion pretty quickly.

"What the hell Knightwalker, it must be the crack of f'ing dawn!"

"I told you, you're going to start training with me in the mornings. If you have a problem with that, take it up with the Council. I'll meet you on the parade field in ten minutes"

Erza stalked out of the room as Jellal groaned and dragged himself out of bed and tried to straighten up the best he could. Trying to fix his hair while simultaneously pulling on some sort of acceptable clothing, the king stumbled from his room and made it to the field with seconds to spare.

"Congratulations, you're on time. Now get over here, we're doing warm up stretches."

Twenty minutes later, Jellal was sore in places he didn't even know he had. His arms felt completely limp, and his legs were straining to support his own weight. He struggled to stand up straight and limped desperately back towards his room.

"Where the hell do you think you're going? That was just the warm-up, we haven't even gotten started yet!"

Jellal gaped at her—clearly Knightwalker was deranged. But she looked deadly serious, so with a groan he limped back over to where she was standing. The sun had just begun to peer over the palace walls, making it even easier for Erza to see how bad of shape Jellal was in.

_Hmph. Weakling. If I was that guy I'd be ashamed of myself. Though he does appear quite fit—in this light his—Damnnit Knightwalker, stop thinking like that. It's unprofessional, feelings mean nothing to me!_

The next hour were the most intense workout Jellal had ever experienced, but by the end Erza had not yet started sweating and had not a hair out of place. Jellal stumbled back to his room as soon as Erza let him go and immediately jumped in a cold shower.

_Gods that woman is unbelievable. She can't be human, no one's that perfect; she's like a goddess._

Jellal stumbled out of the shower and almost collapsed into his desk chair. The day had barely begun and already he was exhausted. If this is what everyday was going to be like, maybe he should go to the Council and request a different bodyguard. But no one would be even close to Erza's caliber, not since Pantherlily had left to go to Earthland.

The king groaned aloud when there was a sudden knock on his door. It opened to reveal Coco (_thank the gods!_) wearing an impish smile on her face.

"I heard _someone_ just got down with a rather intense session with Captain Knightwalker."

"Shut the hell up Coco, I'm exhausted."

"So it is true. She seemed to be in a rather good mood when I saw her."

"Yeah, cuz she's a sadistic bitch who enjoys seeing me in pain."

"I really don't think that's it Your Highness, and I think you know it too."

Jellal simply groaned and put his head down on his stacks of paper. "Just stop with that already Coco, what did you actually have to tell me?"

"Oh, yes, the Council requests your presence immediately. Something about the coronation."

The king had no energy left to complain, and simply stood and shuffled out of his room and into the council's chambers. 

"Ah, Your Majesty, so good to see you." Councilman Bohr greeted as he entered, as Byro and Erza, the only two others in the room bowed politely. Jellal thought he saw a slight sadistic smirk on her face as he tensed in pain with each step, but it could have just been the light.

"As you know, your coronation is fast approaching Your Highness, and we have something rather important we need to discuss. It is a tradition in Edolas that the king—or queen, as it may be—is to choose his queen on this day. You are aware if this, correct Your Majesty?"

Jellal nodded; he had been aware, but hadn't really thought of the ancient tradition as a factor at all.

"Now, we know this can be difficult, especially for someone your age, but the Council asks that you at least attempt to fulfill this tradition. There will be several parties and balls within the next few weeks leading up to the coronation, so keep an eye out for anyone you may be, ahh… interested in."

Jellal nodded again, his mind already a million miles away. The council dismissed him and he returned to his room, his head still swirling. Upon entering his office, he found that Coco had yet to leave, and was looking rather comfortable in the king's office chair.

"You look upset. What's up Your Highness?" Coco asked, slightly concerned.

"The council wants me to choose a wife by coronation day."

"Well I can't imagine that'd be that difficult. You're a king, for Extalia's skae, you should be able to get anyone you want."

Jellal simply gestured towards the door and Coco took her cue to leave, letting the king wallow.

_If only it were that simple, Coco. I can't get anybody, I can't even get the one that I really want. I thought I could wait, take it slow, but now… what the hell am I going to do?_

Erza was absolutely livid. She stalked back to her room and probably broke the door with the force of her slamming it, but she was past caring.

_Bohr you bastard, that tradition is fucking ancient! What the hell were you thinking, forcing him into that? Now he'll wind up with some bitchy bimbo who doesn't know him at all, he deserves better than that! _

She swung her ever-present Ten Commandments in a blind rage, destroying her mirror and leaving a deep gouge in the stone wall. She had never been good at expressing her feelings, and now this!

The captain let out another shout of frustration, taking out her bedside table with another angry swing. She furiously blinked hot tears from her eyes before dropping the spear and collapsing onto her bed, unable to deal with the sudden flood of emotions.

**Oooh, Jellal I feel your pain. Unrequited love is such a bitch, but fortunately it may not be entirely unrequited. Hope y'all enjoy this, cuz I won't be able to update for a while. Christmas and all that jazz. The plot bunnies are back though, and this is gonna get a hell of a lot fluffier pretty fast. Have fun!**


	3. ALL the feels

**Author's Note- I LIVE! Sorry for keeping y'all waiting. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year and whatever other holidays you people celebrate. Festivus or whatever. Anyway, it's been a while, so please forgive any continuity errors you may encounter, I'll try to fix them at a later time. So here ya go, we'll try for a long chapter to make up for it.**

**Chapter 3: ALL the Feels!**

Erza may have thought her outburst would pass unnoticed, but a rather perceptive Coco picked up on the cues, like the damaged walls and shattered door frame. Y'know, the little things.

Intrigued by what had caused her little tantrum, Coco decided to see if the King had any knowledge on the subject. She flounced up to Jellal's door and knocked lightly.

A rather flustered and sleepy looking Jellal answered the door rather rapidly, and Coco could tell he had fallen asleep doing all his damn paperwork again. She invited herself in and flopped down on the chair the King kept across from his desk.

"So, Erza had a little tantrum last night. Busted up her door and everything. Any idea what that's about?"

"What Captain Knightwalker does on her own time is her concern, not mine. Now, do you have any news, or did you just come to gossip? In case you haven't noticed, I'm very busy, and now Bohr is trying to force me into marriage… "

Jellal continued ranting, but Coco suddenly put two and two together and found the answer to her questions. She quietly stood and excused herself from the room, but Jellal just kept on going, either ignoring her or not even realizing she had left.

"… and then there's this freakin' situation or whatever in Jinniyyah that just has me losing my mind! By the gods, Coco, I think I'm going insane—_and_ you left already, didn't you?"

Jellal spun around and found it to be true. His only audience now absent, he returned to his desk to sulk. All this crap was being dumped on him, and he had no one to turn to.

_Maybe I _do_ need to get married. At the very least I'd have someone to help out with all this. That is, of course, if who I'd like to marry was in any way interested in me. By Extalia, what the hell am I going to do…?_

Unbeknownst to the pondering monarch, the red haired captain was having a similar introspective session, albeit a much more violent one. Having noticed the destruction last night's rampage had caused, she had decided to relocate to the training yard. she now stood in the center, practicing her forms with a bit more violence than was actually necessary.

_Why should that old ass have any say in who Jellal should marry? _she thought venomously, switching to an offensive stance and violently disemboweling a practice dummy. _What the hell does he know about anything?! He'll wind up with some royal gold-digging whore or some shit and… wait, why do I care so much?_

Erza snapped from her reverie with a growl and impaled a punching bag, before spinning around and attempting to sweep another dummy off its feet. Halfway through the maneuver, her left foot slipped slightly, sending her sprawling and sending a painful spasm up her right leg.

Standing rather painfully, Erza threw away her spear in blind rage and punched out the still-standing dummy. In her fury, she didn't even notice Coco's discreet approach until the girl made her presence known.

"Working out some anger there, Captain?"

The captain in question spun around and almost chucked her spear at the intruder, before realizing that she had thrown it away in a corner only moments before.

"What the hell do you want Coco? Can't you see I'm fucking busy?!"

"Well, to me, it looks like you're working through some shit right now. Wanna talk about it?"

"Do I look like I want to talk about it?" Erza growled, picking up Ten Commandments again and beginning her forms once more.

"If I may ask, does this have anything to do with His Majesty's upcoming arranged marriage?"

Erza faltered at this, freezing up completely as she felt her face take on a light blush. _By the gods, why did she have to bring that up!_

"Sore topic? You look a little bit flustered Captain."

"S-shut up! It's not like that!"

"Captain, at least make an effort to hid your feelings. I'm actually surprised I'm the only one who's noticed it so far. You love him, don't you?"

"I- I have no idea what you're talking about." Erza replied stubbornly, turning away to hide her face, which had taken on a color that was fast approaching the color of her own hair.

"Y'know, you should really talk to him about that. I feel like he'd be more… understanding than you think."

"Understanding?! Why does it matter if he's understanding? He's my superior, my _**King**_, even admitting I have feelings for him is an act of high treason! That is, _if_ I had feelings for him, which I definitely don't. Now get the hell out of here Coco, before I _really_ get pissed off!"

Coco flashed her a sad smile before turning and skipping away. Now even more confused and flustered, Erza let out a shout and sent her fist crashing through a rack of swords. _Damnnit! What the hell am I going to do?!_

Erza's outburst had inspired Coco. Clearly, the King and the Captain both had a thing for the other, and she had decided to do a little matchmaking. She pranced back towards Jellal's room with a plan formulating in her mind.

She gently entered the room without knocking, and was unsurprised to find Jellal sitting at the window facing out over the courtyard, look rather solemn and exhausted. Coco approached him from behind and cleared her throat loudly, causing the king to jump slightly.

"Wha- Oh, I'm sorry Coco, I didn't hear you come in."

"Your Majesty, have you given any thought on who you wish to marry?"

"By Extalia, who the hell wants to know now?!"

"No one in particular, Your Highness."

"Not Byro? Bohr? None of them?"

"Just me."

"Thank the gods! I hate it when they feel the need to check up on me." Jellal paused and seemed to ponder something for a few moments. "Hey, Coco… if it's just you that wants to know… can I be perfectly honest with you? And know that you won't talk to anyone about it?"

"Of course, Your Majesty."

"There _is_ someone I've been thinking about… but I'm not sure they see me in that way. Like, at all."

"Hmm…" Coco murmured, quite sure she knew exactly who Jellal was talking about. "Well, what are you going to do about it?"

"That's the problem, Coco, I have no idea. There's no way in hell I can just approach her about it. She… well, she wouldn't take that well."

"Interesting. This person you're talking about—it's Captain Knightwalker, isn't it?"

Jellal froze and his face instantly blanched, then promptly reddened. He stuttered incoherently and developed a slightly unhealthy-looking twitch in his hand. He suddenly spun around and sat down hard, burying his face into his desk.

"Gods, it's hopeless, isn't it? I may be the king of this country, but she doesn't like me. She doesn't even respect me! I left my country in a time of need, and she'll never forgive me for that! And marry me? She'd probably marry fucking Faust before even thinking about it!"

Coco smiled slightly, despite her King's angst. "Something tells me you shouldn't be too worried about that. Just… don't give up on her yet."

Coco pranced out of the room, leaving a confused Jellal behind to sulk. She only stopped skipping happily when she reached her room and plopped down on her bed, rather content with what she'd accomplished.

_Well, now they're both all riled up, so let's see what they'll do. This ought to be fun ;);)_

**There you go, slightly longer chapter for your troubles, I guess. I just loved writing this, tsundere Knightwalker is just too freaking kawaii. *fangirls intensely* Alright, I'm calm now. Hopefully I can update sooner this time, but finals are approaching for me, so don't expect too much. **


	4. Matchmaker, Matchmaker

**Author's Note- I don't know why I chose Coco as my matchmaker for this story, but I needed someone to do it and, well who else was I gonna pick? Why not Sugar Boy? So in this chapter, Sugar Boy decides to get in on the fun and God knows that won't end well. So prepare for some of the more entertaining aspects of this story. Maybe Hughes will show up too.**

**Chapter 4: Matchmaker, Matchmaker…**

"Dude, check out how hard Erza-san's goin' on the King. Amazing!"

"Quiet down, Hughes, or she'll notice us!"

Hughes and Sugar Boy had taken a not-so-discreet hiding spot in a window overlooking the courtyard, trying to sneak a look and "what was _really_ happening during those training sessions," as Sugar Boy put it. So far, all they had seen was a sweaty Jellal and an increasingly sadistic Erza. The pair picked up bo staffs and began sparring

"Ooohh" Sugar Boy exhaled sharply as Erza landed a powerful blow to Jellal's exposed left leg. "That's gonna leave a mark."

Jellal stumbled, slightly surprised by the force of the blow. He had expected Erza to hold back a little bit, but that didn't appear to be the case. He shifted his stance to accommodate his injury and struck. His feeble attempt was easily deflected and Erza smirked.

"You're never going to be able to hit anyone with any force with form like that." she commented, attacking with a low, sweeping blow that Jellal only barely deflected.

"Well, then why don't you show me proper form?"

Erza's smirk slipped just slightly, and Jellal gained one of his own. Unable to refuse, Erza dropped her staff and walked behind the King. She reached over his shoulders and adjusted his arm position, her hair falling lightly on the side of Jellal's face.

Jellal could feel his face growing red and looked away slightly. _Gods, I didn't expect her to actually do that!_

Erza lingered a second longer than was absolutely necessary, savoring the feel of his body so close to hers. Suddenly realizing what she was doing, she flinched hard and stumbled backwards. Surprised, Jellal spun around and Erza promptly dropped and swept his legs out with a low kick.

"Next lesson: always be aware of your surroundings!" she called out, walking back towards her room. She made sure to keep her back to him to hid her blush, but a rather perceptive Sugar Boy picked it out from his perch.

"Hehehe, looks like Coco was right, they _do_ have a thing for each other. Well, let the matchmaking commence!"

"Amazing dude! Let's go!"

"Yeah, about that… you go, like, feed the Legions or something. Your attitude is not exactly conducive to a romantic atmosphere."

"Aww, man…"

Hughes slinked off, slightly disappointed by his lack of involvement. Sugar Boy sighed in relief, happy that the Captain had decided not to argue. The armor-clad man turned the corner and Coco immediately fell into step with him, having appeared out of a random room.

"So, do you believe me now?"

"Well there's definitely _something_ going on between those two."

"I totally told you so. But anyway, what do you think we should do?"

"Well, if I recall correctly, there's a Royal Ball next week in honor of those visitors from Ven-wherever the hell it was."

"Ven-Kerrick? You may be right…"

Sugar Boy was right. The next week, a Royal Ball took place to honor visiting lords (and ladies too) from the rather distant land of Ven-Kerrick. The party had the additional benefit of giving Jellal the opportunity to "go wife shopping," as Hughes bluntly put it.

The big day arrived and everyone was dressed to the nines, albeit rather uncomfortably. Sugar Boy missed the bulkiness of his ever-present armor, and Hughes—well, no one really knew what Hughes thought because all he had done the entire evening was look at himself in any reflective surface and whisper "Amazing."

Jellal was a bit more at ease—he was used to this kind of garb and environment, but he could still pick up the unease from his captains. The only thing Jellal was concerned about was the so-called wife shopping that was supposed to be taking place. He knew there would be no real looking going on—at least not at the foreign women.

Erza was probably the most uncomfortable of them all. She looked absolutely stunning, Jellal thought, but he had never seen her look more put off by her clothing and surroundings. She was used to combat boots, not high heels, and her dress, while it accentuated her assets and only added to her beauty, was a far cry from her unconstrained (albeit quite revealing) armor.

Sugar Boy had come with what he thought was a fairly ingenious plan. Coco wasn't present on the front end of the party (she was in charge of all the behind the scenes work) but she'd be around to see the result.

Jellal had been quite busy for most of the evening, greeting dignitaries and dancing with various dignitaries' wives or daughters. He finally got a moment to himself on the large ballroom balcony overlooking the main courtyard. He spent a moment soaking in the view before turning around and tried to find Erza in the crowd.

It was rather easy actually, her unique hair color making it difficult for her to conceal herself. A nervous young man walked up to her and they exchanged some words, after which the man scurried away, looking rather terrified. This was about the fourth person he had seen approach her, and the fourth to face the same reaction.

Jellal watched as Sugar Boy sidled up besides Erza and the two broke into a quiet conversation. Erza conceded to whatever Sugar Boy had said, rolling her eyes before letting the man take her arm and waist and danced lightly through the crowd, approaching where the King was standing.

The pair stopped directly in front of the King.

"Ahh, Your Majesty, you look lonely. Here, you can have this beautiful woman I picked up over there. Be careful, she might step on your toes."

Erza scowled but when Sugar Boy suddenly swept away leaving her with the King, she really had no choice but to strike up a conversation.

"So have you… found anyone that you'd… consider?" she managed to get out with embarrassing herself or strangling anyone.

_Oh gods, Erza if only you knew!_ "No… not really. Though I must say, the sheer number of people who are considering _me_ is making me rather uncomfortable."

"Bahh, they're all little gold-diggers anyway." Erza spat out, more than slightly upset.

Jellal chuckled—her bluntness never failed to impress him. "Well, since neither of us are doing anything… would you let me have this dance?"

Erza rolled her eyes again, trying to conceal her glee at this turn of events. "Well if you insist, _Your Majesty_."

Jellal smiled again. "Well even a King can deign to dance with his protector."

"Protector… I like that title. His Majesty's Protector."

With that, Jellal took Erza's waist and she wrapped her arms around his neck and the two danced. It was slow and rather clumsy- neither of the two were the best at dancing- but for a few special moments it was just the two of them. Erza felt the same feeling she had when she had helped Jellal in training before, and Jellal could focus on nothing except the beautiful redhead's arms around his neck.

Sugar Boy stood over by the far wall with Coco watching the king and the captain dance. The music stopped and most guests went back to conversing, but the pair remained entwined for several minutes after the music ended. They both seemed to come to this realization at the same time, jerking violently apart from each other and swiftly walking in opposite directions with suspiciously red faces.

"They are so totally in love with each other." Coco commented and Sugar Boy could only agree.

**OH MY GOD THEIR SO ADORABLE! I'm freakin' out over here guys, I've always wanted to write some fluffy dancing something. A rather specific wish, I know, but whatever. Hope this'll tide you over til next time!**


	5. Operation: Hook Up

**Author's Note- I LIVE! Yeah, sorry for not updating but I've been kinda busy… **

**Anyway, I'm not sure exactly where to go with this, but that's never stopped me before! So, random thoughts that come to my head as I write, go!**

**Chapter 5: Operation: Hook Up**

Jellal sat down and sighed. _Ahh, paperwork; the bane of my existence_. he thought, yanking the first sheet off the stack and reading it. He had just made it past the first sentence when he heard a knock on his door.

Throwing the paper back down, Jellal stood and ripped open the door. "What the hell do you peo- Oh. Captain. I apologize, come in."

Erza stepped into the King's room, slightly put off by the outburst. "Stressed, your Majesty?"

"What makes you think that?" Jellal joked humorlessly, collapsing back into his chair. He sighed deeply again and dropped his head into the stack of papers. "Honestly, Captain, I'm not sure I can handle much more of this."

Erza sat in the chair opposite and thought about what to say. "Well, what exactly is so stressful?"

"Damn near everything! Byro just keeps loading this shit on me— peace treaties, trade agreements, freaking requests to change the colors of the damn curtains! Apparently I'm the only one who's actually allowed to do anything about it!"

Erza had to agree—the amount of paperwork her King had to do was simply ridiculous. She'd have to have a talk with Byro about that. But for now…

"Anything I could do to help?"

"Well, it's probably high treason, but you could forge my signature on a lot of this stuff. That'd be quite helpful."

Erza took a stack of the papers and started to careful forge Jellal's signature. Some of the stuff she was signing seemed ridiculously unnecessary- proposal to change temperature of the right wing by one degree, proposal to forbid Hughes from saying "Amazing," proposal to marry the King of Edolas—_Wait, what?_

"Hey, your Highness, you sure you want me to sign this one?" she asked, waving the paper in his face and growing slightly more agitated.

"Hmmm, must have missed that one. Who's it from… The Lady Adaroan of… how the hell do you even pronounce that country?"

"No idea, I've never even heard of it." she replied, trying to hid her growing anger.

"Hmm… well throw _that_ one in the reject bin I guess. Let me know if you run into anymore."

A moment of silence followed, only broken by the rustling of papers. Erza finally broke the quiet.

"So, these women… they can't even find the time to meet you personally? They just send you letters asking for your hand in marriage?"

"Well when you think about it, they're probably as busy as me, but yeah, I guess."

"Don't you find that annoying? I mean, clearly they don't really care about you as a person, they just want to be royalty."

"I suppose… why are you so concerned? I know you're really blunt most of the time but this seems excessive."

"I- I just want to make sure we don't have any questionable residents in this castle."

"Oh, is that all?" Jellal smiled mischievously and leaned back in his chair. Erza flushed slightly and picked up another stack of papers.

"Yes, yes it is." she snapped, burying herself into the stack of paperwork. This didn't help much however, as after less than a minute she had already pulled out three more marriage proposals. Each one she found only made her more flustered and upset. Jellal only watched with mild amusement.

"Clearly those proposals are upsetting you. Want to talk about it?"

"No, you damn idiot, I don't want to talk about it." Erza growled. She stood and dragged Jellal out of his chair, pushing him up against the wall. She brought her hands behind his head, wrapping them in his hair and pulling his head down just slightly before kissing him deeply.

Needless to say, Jellal was very surprised by this. He stood frozen in shock for a moment before wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her body closer to him. They continued to kiss as if the world were ending, years of pent up passion and desire finally being released.

Erza finally broke away, staggering backwards out of Jellal's grasp and turning away. "No." she gasped. "No, Your Highness, we can't."

"Erza, I'm the King, what's the problem?" Jellal replied, approaching from behind and kissing her neck.

"What's the problem?! Your Highness, this is treason!" Erza spun around and back stepped rapidly. "I can't…"

"You can't what?" Jellal asked gently.

"I- I can't- I can't love you, that's what! I don't know what I was doing. It's behavior unbefitting of a soldier. I should return to my post." Erza stalked out of the room, blinking away tears and leaving behind one very confused monarch.

Erza had made it halfway to her assigned corridor before she remembered that her post now was supposed to be guarding the King. _Too damn late for that_ she thought bitterly before turning a corner and finding herself on the training yard.

"If you know what's good for you, get out." she growled at the few guards who were working out in their free time. She hefted Ten Commandments and hurled it across the yard, where it smashed into the lone tree in the center of the courtyard and buried itself deep into the trunk.

The slightly terrified soldiers quickly left the yard as Erza stalked over to retrieve her weapon. She yanked it from the tree and swung wildly, gutting yet another punching bag and nearly scalping the slowest guard as he hurried to the exit.

Once the others were gone, her rage boiled away, leaving only sadness behind. She dropped Ten Commandments and sank into a sitting position against the tree, the tears she was trying to hold back finally falling freely.

"I thought I'd find you here." Coco's voice cut in. "His Majesty is standing in his room in shock, muttering something about he "she kissed me." Know anything about that?"

Erza didn't even have the strength to glare at the intruder and decided to just be honest. "I kissed him Coco. Why did I fucking do that? I can't be in love with him, he's- he's…"

"He's your King."

"Yes! It's my duty to protect him, not get romantically attached."

"Wow. You really do love him, don't you?"

Erza hesitated slightly before answering, but she was in too deep to cover it up now. "I- yes. I do love him. But he's the King, just telling you this could be considered treason, so what am I supposed to do about it?"

Coco's sudden lack of a reply made Erza look over and find that the girl had disappeared. She sunk back against the tree trunk and realized that just by opening up like that she felt much better.

Councilman Bohr was walking down one of the castles many corridors on his way to Council chamber, where Coco had just told him of an emergency meeting. He was thinking about what exactly this meeting could be about when suddenly he was hit over the head with something hard and dragged into a small dark room.

"Councilman Bohr… it has been brought to our attention that there are certain laws in place that we preferred be removed. Present these documents at the next council meeting and insure they pass. Otherwise, the consequences will be… dire."

Sugar Boy (For truly, that's who had been in the closet (literally and figuratively, if ya catch my drift)) pushed Bohr out the door and quickly slipped out behind him while he gathered his papers. Bohr pulled out the folder that had been given to him and gave it a quick once over.

The contents surprised him, as he had originally thought he had been captured by a terrorist group.

_What the hell is this stuff?_ he thought. Bill to add 2000 square feet to the Legion stables, bill to use higher quality liquor in the soldier's mess hall, bill to allowing armor as official formal attire for feasts and balls, and most confusing of all, bill to reorganize requirements to marry the King of Edolas.

_What kind of terrorists are these people?_

**Hehehe Bohr, they're not terrorists at all! At least, I don't think they are. Hughes always seemed a little suspicious. Shame on you sugar Boy, using Coco's plan for your own personal benefit. But anyway, yeah for angsty stuff, despite my inability to actually drag it out for any reasonable time frame. The chapter title come from my original plan where Sugar Boy locks Jellal and Erza in a closet together, but I like this story better. Still got the closet part in though.**


	6. Preparations

**Author's Note- Whoa, what, two chapters in two days, what is this black magic? Thank you everybody for reviewing, especially LuxrayGuy, who just seems super dedicated to this story. You be awesome. Anyway, here's yet another chapter that I really don't know exactly what I want to do. So we'll see how this turns out.**

**Chapter 6- Preparations**

Jellal was stressed. While this itself wasn't new, the reason for his stress was slightly different. His coronation was mere days away, and everyone in the castle apparently had _something_ he just _had_ to do something about.

The king staggered into the council chamber for yet another meeting. He was slightly surprised by the people in attendance- for the first time in several days, the whole council in attendance. _Which means this one will only be even _longer_ than usual._ Jellal thought, groaning inwardly

Bohr started the meeting with a variety of bill proposals, which seemed rather stranger than usual. _Was that something about armor as formal wear? Did Sugar Boy suggest this crap?_ Jellal shrugged and turned his attention back to what he had been doing before; staring at one particular redheaded Captain and trying to figure out what she was thinking.

"And finally, we have a bill to propose a realignment of requirements to marry members of the royal family, including military officers to the list of acceptable persons. All in favor?"

Jellal sat up slightly in shock at his words. He glanced over at Erza to see if she had anything to do with this turn of events, but she looked just as surprised and—could it be—just a little bit joyful?

The council approved all the bills Bohr suggested and moved on to the coronation plans. Jellal couldn't pay attention to anything they were saying; he was too busy thinking about the implications of the bill that had just passed. If military officers were considered acceptable… well, long story short but that solved a fairly major problem in his mind.

The meeting closed about half an hour later, with the king in significantly better spirits than he had been in going into the meeting. Coco noticed his out-of-place behavior and approached.

"Get some good news or something? You never look this happy coming out of those meetings."

Jellal looked at Coco and suddenly put it together. Coco's discussions with him, Sugar Boy abandoning Erza with him at that dance, the suspicious bill proposals…

"Coco, I have no idea what the hell you did, and I'm not sure I want to know, but by the gods, thank you."

Coco smiled at him slyly. "I have no clue what you could be talking about, Your Majesty, but I'll let Captain Sugar Boy know."

Jellal's grin only grew wider as he watched Coco flounce off, and it took all he had not to skip giddily back to his quarters. He made it back to his office and started humming happily as he sat down and started working on his never-diminished pile of paperwork, aware of how strange it must look, him being happy while doing paperwork.

There was a tentative knock at his door, and Jellal flung it open to reveal a rather uncertain Erza, whom he immediately invited in.

"Someone seems rather happy about today's news." she commented before taking a seat opposite Jellal.

"Judging by what happened a few days ago, I'm surprised you aren't more excited yourself."

Erza reddened slightly. She had hoped he had forgotten that, but knew there was no way in hell that would ever happen. "I am happy, but I choose not to show it like a little schoolgirl." she replied pointedly.

Jellal laughed loudly, a sound Erza loved to hear but hadn't happened often enough as of late. "True enough, Captain, true enough. Anyway, why have you decided to grace me with your presence today?"

"As I told you before, I need no reason to do anything around you, _Your Majesty_."

"Ahh, but of course. Well, if you aren't doing anything, I believe we had some unfinished business…"

That was all the encouragement Erza needed. She once again grabbed Jellal and kissed him passionately, pulling him up from his chair and pushing him back against the wall.

Jellal broke the kiss and pulled Erza in closer. "Hehe, _someone_ likes being in control."

"Gods, just shut up and kiss me." she growled, tugging his mouth back to hers and kissing him roughly. A sudden knock on the door interrupted their passionate embrace.

"Uhh… who- who is it?" Jellal called out as Erza frantically tried to find a place to hide.

"Just me, your Majesty." came Byro's voice in reply. "May I come in?"

"Why of course, Councilman, let me get the door for you." Jellal replied, gesturing madly under the desk until Erza took the cue and dove under it mere seconds before Jellal swung the door open and Byro swept into the room.

He took a seat in the chair opposite Jellal's desk while the king took his own, his legs pressing against Erza as she crouched under the desk.

"So what brings you to my humble abode, Councilman?"

"Just wanted to check up on you. What with the coronation and everything coming up, you've been very busy."

"It's been a rough ride, Councilman."

"Well, it's good to know you've been keeping it together these last few days. Anyway, Bohr desperately wants to know how you've been doing in your search for a queen. Or second king, I suppose of you swing that way."

"I'll never understand why he cares so much about this but… there is someone I've been thinking about." Jellal leaned back just enough to see Erza's face under his desk and winked discreetly.

"I'm sure he'll be very pleased to find out. I'll let him know. If I may ask, who is the lucky lady?"

"That's something I'd prefer to keep to myself for the moment, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. Good day to you your Majesty." Byro stood and let himself out. As soon as he had left the room, Erza kicked Jellal out of his chair and crawled out from under the desk.

"Damn, you _really_ need to sweep under there or something."

Jellal only grinned. "You make it sound like you'll be spending a lot more time down there…"

Erza blinked then punched Jellal in the shoulder. "Shut up, you perv." She leaned in and kissed his neck before whispering in his ear. "I'd never stoop that low without getting something in return."

Jellal gulped slightly and returned the kiss. Erza pushed him down back into his chair then sat facing him, straddling his lap. "And I think we'll start right now."

Byro walked away from the door, having heard most of what had transpired after he had "left."

"About damn time you two. About damn time."

**Hehehe Byro ships it too! Anyhoo, next chapter'll probably be up within a week, maybe? Hopefully we can finally get to the coronation part. Hope you enjoy!**


	7. Coronation

**Author's Note- SO, we finally get the long awaited coronation. Or at least it's been long awaited for me. Y'know what, just read the chapter, we'll talk at the end.**

**Chapter 7: Coronation**

The day had finally arrived. After months of stress and preparations, it was finally the morning of Jellal's official coronation. He woke up feeling refreshed for once, as Byro had demanded he get plenty of sleep for the ceremony that evening.

After almost two hours of being "prepared" and dressed, Jellal stepped out into the main hall and was slightly shocked by the number of people present. Dignitaries, current and former council members, and a rather eccentric looking elderly woman that Jellal had the sneaking suspicion was Sugar Boy's mother had gathered for the ceremony.

"You look to be a very popular king." came a sudden voice from behind him. Erza stood in her normal armor, as always, wielding Ten Commandments. Noticing his look, Erza sighed. "Don't worry, they'll force me into something more appropriate this evening but for now, I'm just security. Hopefully you won't need it."

Jellal smiled at his bodyguard and was suddenly greeted by the last person he expected.

"Hey, Mystogan, ya old bastard! Still goin' by that name or did ya switch back to Jellal now?"

Jellal spun around, surprised but elated. "Pantherlily!" he cried out in greeting to one of his oldest friends. He had found some way to sustain his battle form in magic-less Edolas (probably through a lacrima from Earthland, Jellal thought) and appeared dressed to the nines, in a suit and everything.

The soon-to-be-King ran over and grabbed the Exceed in a tight hug. "How the hell did you even get here?"

"Remember that guy Mest from the council? Well, with a little help, he managed to teleport me here."

"Whaddya mean, a little help? And why'd you go through all that trouble for _me_?"

"Well, it took some doing but somehow we got Laxus to, like supercharge Mest's powers or somethin'. I have no idea, really. Anyway, why do all that? For you, man! I won't miss my friend's coronation for the world!"

Jellal grinned madly and released his friend. "Glad you could make it, man."

Pantherlily turned towards Erza and grinned at his old comrade. "And a hearty hello to you to, Captain. Titania sends her regards."

Erza scowled slightly at the mention of her counter-part, but was happy to see Pantherlily's return. Pantherlily girnned widely at her before making a slightly strange request.

"Captain, do you mind if I borrow His Majesty for a short moment? I want to have a talk with him real quick."

Erza shrugged nonchalantly. She was confident in Pantherlily's abilities to protect the King, and figured the Exceed just wanted to catch up.

Lily pulled Jellal off into a corner and turned to face him. "You two seemed to have improved your relationship significantly."

Jellal flushed and looked down. "Yeah… a little… she's my bodyguard now."

"So I heard. And you don't have to get so embarrassed about it, we talked about this before."

It was true. Before he had left for Earthland, Pantherlily had been the only one Jellal had confided in about his true feelings; feelings for Erza, his fears about running the country, everything. Lily had been his confidant for everything, and that hadn't changed.

Jellal smiled at this. "I'm going to marry her, Lil. Someone's looking out for me, they got the law changed, and I'm gonna ask her tonight."

"Does she know?"

"Well, she will when I ask her."

"…You should already know I'm going to call you an idiot."

"I know, I know. But I'm not _completely_ crazy—she kissed me, Lily! In my office, for no reason! Granted, she flipped out about ten seconds later, but that must mean _something_!"

"Hmmm… well, I wasn't aware of that. I still don't think this is a great idea, I mean, Captain Knightwalker does _not_ take surprise well. I would know."

"Well, it doesn't really matter what you say at this point Lil, cuz I'm going to do it anyway."

"I know better then to stop you. Oh, by the way, there's someone else you should talk to before you go back to wooing Erza."

"I'm not wooing her!"

"Whatever you say. Anyway, come with me."

Pantherlily led Jellal through the throngs of people until they reached a rather familiar Exceed.

"Shagotte? Is that you?" Jellal asked, slightly surprised. His only former interaction with the Exceed queen had been strictly formal, and it was a bit shocking to see her in a much less uptight atmosphere.

"Ahh, yes hello Your Majesty. Pantherlily has talked about you a lot recently—he's been very excited for this event."

"And he managed to convince you to come with him?"

"Actually, the way we arrived was my idea in the first place. However, we can catch up later, it looks like you're needed elsewhere."

Jellal saw Byro waving for him from the steps and bowed politely to the Exceeds before returning. Byro led Jellal back into his bedroom where he began preparations for the ceremony itself.

Hours later, Jellal finally emerged from his room decked in layer after layer of gilded garments, and the ceremonial helm of the crown prince perched firmly on his head. Erza greeted him outside, looking simply stunning in a dress that matched her hair, complete with knee-high boots and a simple silver necklace that appeared to be a small rendition of Ten Commandments.

"You look… great."

"As do you, Your Majesty. Though make sure you stay in line, I may look fabulous but I still have a knife in both of these boots. I _am_ your bodyguard still."

Jellal was rather unsurprised by this, and walked out to the courtyard. Erza took her place in the front row of spectators, immediately to the left of the main aisle. Just as they had practiced, Jellal took a deep breath and approached the stage, closely followed by Byro, carrying the royal crown on its ceremonial cloth, and the Edolas Old Guard, a select group of elite former knights who now formed the King's Honor Guard.

Jellal stepped up onto the stage and turned to face the crowd. Byro took the stage behind him, and Jellal kneeled as the ceremony commenced. Byro took the crown, and after a short speech, crowned Jellal the King of Edolas. Jellal stood to make his address, and with a deep breath, commenced.

"As you all now, my father, Faust, abused his power and shattered this country, as well as the bonds it had with others. I hope that we can restore those bonds, and return Edolas to its former glory!"

A great cheer went up, which Jellal quickly quieted with a hand. "Tradition dictates that I choose my queen on this day. And normally, I'd probably just say, and pardon my language, but 'screw that.'" The crowd chuckled lightly. "But I believe that I have found someone that is certainly worthy to be queen of this country, if she believes herself worthy."

Jellal turned to face erza, who had a feeling she knew where this was headed.

"Captain Erza Knightwalker, could you come up here? Please?"

Erza stood shakily and walked up on the stage. Jellal turned to face her and took her hands.

"Erza, you are without a doubt worthy of lead Edolas as its queen, and so I ask you: will you marry me?"

Erza's face was approaching a shade of red similar to her hair, but she managed to squeak out an joyous "yes." Jellal leaned in and kissed her lightly to thunderous applause (and, let's face it, a little bit of jealousy from some audience members), then the pair turned to exit the courtyard. Byro retrieved the ceremonial crown of the queen, and placed it on a the overjoyed Erza's head.

"Honor Guard, attention!" called Sir Margon, the eldest and leader of the Old Guard. "Salute!" The Old Guard lined the aisle out of the courtyard and turned inwards, saluting with their right fist over their heart and their gilded ceremonial sword held high.

The royal couple passed between the lines and out of the courtyard, as the Honor Guard followed behind them. They exited the courtyard, and Jellal could see Pantherlily flashing him a huge smile and two thumbs up. Erza leaned into Jellal, still flushed and exhilarated from the night's events.

"I love you Jellal."

"I love you too, Erza."

**That's- that's it. That might be the end. I'm not sure I have any more. I can try and scrounge up an epilogue or somethin' if you people really want it, but I'm actually really happy with where this story sits right now. Two choices really—I can end this here and move along to another fic (probably a Cobra x Kinana one 0_0) and write more Mystwalker at a later date, or I could keep writing this story and add like, a new story arc or something. I think I'm going to end it. Sorry, I wasn't really expecting it to end this quickly. But I'm happy with it. So there. Thanks for reading, everyone, it's been a ride! Panhead out.**


	8. Hiatus Announcement (Of Sorts)

**Author's Note- Final Chapter**

**So, I'm not going to write another chapter. Sorry everyone, especially LuxrayGuy, you seem very dedicated to this story. Anyway I will be moving on to other things for the time being, most notably a Cobra x Kinana fic that I'm super psyched about. But don't think I've forgotten my Edolas OTP! I will return to this pairing and write a sequel someday. Probably not anytime soon (sorry), but eventually it will show up. In the mean time, check out the Bixlow x Lisanna fic I've already completed, the Kinabra fic I'll be working on soon, and the subsequent Bixlow x Lisanna AU I'm planning on writing after that! So many fics, so little time! Anyway, check 'em out and just keep waiting for that sequel! Consider it a hiatus of sorts. Keep up the awesom, all of you! Panhead out. **


End file.
